West Papua: A regional issue of concern

AWPA calls on the PIF countries to put West Papua on its
agenda as a regional issue of concern

The 41st Pacific
Islands Forum will be held in Port Vila, Vanuatu between
3-6 August.

The Australia West Papua Association has
written to the leaders of the PIF countries asking that

At the PIF summit in Vanuatu in August, the Australia
West Papua Associationurges the Pacific Islands Forum

to have the issue of West Papua on its agenda and also on
the agenda of all future meetings of the PIF as a regional
issue of concern

urges the PIF to send a fact finding
mission to West Papua to investigate the human rights
situation in the territory.

urges the PIF to raise
concerns about the human rights situation in West Papua with
the Indonesian President and call on him to halt any ongoing
or proposed military operations in the Puncak Jaya region.

urges the PIF to grant observer status to genuine
representatives of the West Papuan people who are struggling
for their right to self-determination.

The International
community has be stating that the autonomy package is the
best way forward for the West Papuan people. However , not
only have the West Papuan people rejected it but even those
institutions that were implementing it have also realised it
has failed. We believe that it is pointless for the
international community to keep saying the autonomy package
is the best way forward for the West Papuan people. AWPA
believes that regional organisations such as the PIF can
play an important role in helping facilitate dialogue
between the West Papuan leadership and the Indonesian
Government and we encourage the PIF to urge the Indonesian
President to dialogue with representative of the West Papuan
people to discuss all the issues of concern in the
territory.

Australia West Papua Association
(Sydney)17 July 2010

Re Pacific Islands Forum

Dear
Prime Minister,

The Australia West Papua Association
(Sydney) is writing to you concerning the issue of West
Papua. It is now 47 years since Indonesia took over the
administration of West Papua from the United Nations
Temporary Executive Authority (UNTEA) in 1963 and the people
of West Papua still continue their struggle for self
-determination. This can be clearly seen by the thousands
of West Papuans who marched peacefully in the past week in
the symbolic handing back of the failed “special
autonomy” package to Jakarta. They were also calling for
a referendum.

The human rights situation in West Papua has
continued to deteriorate since the last Pacific Islands
Forum (PIF ) summit with ongoing human rights abuses
occurring in the territory. We would like to bring your
attention to a number of recent reports that raise grave
concerns about the human rights situation in West Papua.

In Amnesty’s International Report for 2010, it
states in relation to Papua“Violence increased sharply
around the time of parliamentary and presidential elections,
creating a climate of fear and intimidation. There were
reports that security forces used unnecessary or excessive
force during demonstrations and tortured and ill treated
people during arrest, questioning and detention. Security
forces also reportedly committed unlawful killings. Severe
restrictions were imposed on the right to peaceful assembly
and expression”.

Amnesty’s report also points out
that“At least 114 people were detained for peacefully
expressing their views. The overwhelming majority were
peaceful political activists who were sentenced to terms of
imprisonment for raising prohibited pro independence flags
in Maluku or Papua”.

Below is an extract from Human
Rights Watch World Report for 2010, in relation to West
Papua.

"Papua and West PapuaIndonesian authorities
have responded to a longstanding, low-level armed separatist
insurgency in the provinces of Papua and West Papua with a
strong troop presence and often harsh and disproportionate
responses to non-violent dissent or criticism. Human Rights
Watch has long expressed concerns over anti-separatist
sweeps by the police, which often result in individuals who
peacefully express support for independence being arrested
and detained on charges of treason or rebellion (makar). The
government continues to restrict access by foreign human
rights monitors and journalists to Papua, exacerbating the
existing climate of impunity and making investigations
extremely difficult. Prior to being ordered to close its
Jayapura office, the ICRC had been visiting detainees in
Papua's Abepura prison, where prison guards continued to
torture inmates, including political prisoners Buchtar
Tabuni and Yusak Pakage.

In July a series of shootings at
the Freeport goldmine in Timika left three people dead,
including one Australian. Police, declaring that the Free
Papua Movement (OPM) was involved in the attacks, arrested
at least 20 Papuans in relation to the killings and declared
seven as suspects. The OPM denied any involvement, and those
targeted by the police insisted that they were neither
affiliated with the OPM nor participants in the attacks. In
November police released the final seven Papuans detained in
connection with the incident. In November a Manokwari
district court convicted three men of makar (rebellion), for
raising a pro-independence flag".

(Note. Yusak Pakage has
been released in July and this is welcome however a large
number of political prisoners still remain in
jail.)

The Indonesian security forces have also been
conducting sweeping operations in the Puncak Jaya regency in
the highlands of West Papua looking for members of the OPM.
These security operations have occurred regularly in the
Puncak Jaya region leaving the local people in fear and
traumatised. There has been a call by the authorities for
the OPM to surrender and there is a danger that if the OPM
does not surrender a much larger security operation will
take place. The possibility of a larger military operation
taking place is only adding to the fear in local
communities in the region.

We thank all the Forum
leaders for raising concerns about the human rights
situation in West Papua in the official communiqué at past
PIF summits.

At the PIF summit in Vanuatu in August,
the Australia West Papua Associationurges the Pacific
Islands Forum

to have the issue of West Papua on its
agenda and also on the agenda of all future meetings of the
PIF as a regional issue of concern

urges the PIF to send
a fact finding mission to West Papua to investigate the
human rights situation in the territory.

urges the PIF to
raise concerns about the human rights situation in West
Papua with the Indonesian President and call on him to halt
any ongoing or proposed military operations in the Puncak
Jaya region.

urges the PIF to grant observer status to
genuine representatives of the West Papuan people who are
struggling for their right to self-determination.

The
International community has be stating that the autonomy
package is the best way forward for the West Papuan people.
However , not only have the West Papuan people rejected it
but even those institutions that were implementing it have
also realised it has failed. We believe that it is
pointless for the international community to keep saying the
autonomy package is the best way forward for the West Papuan
people. AWPA believes that regional organisations such as
the PIF can play an important role in helping facilitate
dialogue between the West Papuan leadership and the
Indonesian Government and we encourage the PIF to urge the
Indonesian President to dialogue with representative of the
West Papuan people to discuss all the issues of concern in
the territory.

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